A sign announces a residential home sale pending in Framingham. The Massachusetts Association of Realtors recently reported that pending sales of single-family homes in the state have risen for a 43rd time in the last 44 months.
AP FILE PHOTO

Sentinel and Enterprise staff photos can be ordered by visiting our SmugMug site.

A Sentinel & Enterprise Staff Report

WALTHAM -- Pending sales of single-family homes in Massachusetts rose for the 43rd time in the past 44 months in October, as tight inventories are failing to discourage interest in residential real estate.

The Massachusetts Association of Realtors reported last week that 5,680 single-family homes came under agreement in the state last month, up 15.1 percent from the 4,936 recorded in October 2015.

Pending sales of condominiums totaled 1,984 last month, according to MAR, up 8.7 percent from the October 2015 figure of 1,825. That figure has risen in 12 of the past 13 months.

A pending sale or a sale "under agreement" occurs when a buyer and seller agree on terms of the sale of a home, and have a signed purchase-and-sale agreement, but have yet to close and be recorded as such.

Real-estate pros say the tracking of such data provide reliable information about where the real-estate market is heading in coming months.

"Buyers in October kept up the momentum we've seen from the summer into the fall," said MAR President Annie Blatz, branch executive at Kinlin Grover Real Estate in Brewster. "Despite low inventory, buyers are staying actively engaged in the market and pushing both pending sales and prices up."

The median price for a single-family home that came under agreement in Massachusetts last month was $355,778, up 6.2 percent from the year-ago median of $335,000. The average agreed-upon price for a condo last month was $327,000, up 2.8 percent from the year-ago median of $318,000.

Advertisement

The strong real-estate market is also reflected in MAR's Realtor Market Confidence Index, which surveys Realtors on their confidence in the current market. That survey registered a reading of 70.2 on a scale from 0 to 100, in which 50 represents a neutral opinion.

The year-ago figure was 65.5, and the survey has resulted in a year-over-year gain for 20 consecutive months.

The index is calculated in the following way: Respondents indicate whether conditions are, or are expected to be "strong" (100 points), "moderate" (50 points) or "weak" (0 points). The result is the average score of all answers.

"This is a sign Realtors are feeling positive about the market, even as we head into the colder weather and traditionally slower market," Blatz said.

Welcome to your discussion forum: Sign in with a Disqus account or your social networking account for your comment to be posted immediately, provided it meets the guidelines. (READ HOW.)
Comments made here are the sole responsibility of the person posting them; these comments do not reflect the opinion of The Sentinel and Enterprise. So keep it civil.